Rick Famuyiwa

Born: 1973

Where: USA

Famuyiwa made his critical breakthrough with the romantic comedy Brown Sugar.

A graduate of the University of Southern California, he wrote and directed the 12-minute basketball short Blacktop Lingo while still at college.

It was one of only 29 films selected from 1,500 submissions to be screened at the Sundance Film Festival, making him the first graduate to be represented there.

He made his directorial debut with The Wood with a script he developed at the Sundance Institute.

After Brown Sugar he co-scripted The Fighting Temptations and is about to film the self-written Feeling Aretha.